"It was going on now -- they [the Hearst Ranch] are not going to be able to show up and get those zebras. They are wild animals. How are you going to catch them?" he asked the Tribune. A third zebra was shot and killed on a nearby ranch.

Fiscalini said he sent the animals to a taxidermist to make a rug out of their hides"

How did they catch them in Africa? Must be a lost art. Oh well, it'll make a nice rug! BLAM!

you know what else would threaten your livestock? a pissed off neighbor lying in wait with a gun for your livestock to wander one inch off your property. personally, i'm rooting for some good ol'fashioned eye for an eye revenge in this case and it doesn't seem too unlikely that the zebra-shooting neighbor's livestock might wander off for a split second some evening.

I love the crocodile tears from the wife of the taxidermist hired to turn the animals' remains into a rug. That's rancher logic she uses though; if they have the vaguest notion anything might disturb their livestock it automatically becomes a "predator" or other vermin and needs to be removed from the environment.

I suspect that they would take a different stance if it were a matter of stray livestock from ranchers' property being shot because it trespassed on the Hearst estate and was feared to be a threat to the Zebras.

Was this a repeat violation, or a one time thing? And why didn't they call the Hearsts and tell them that they had XXX amount of time to get the zebras off their land before they shot them?

Also, I understand shooting a dangerous animal, but skinning it and having it made into a rug just seems like they did it for some other reason then it being a danger. Like, they wanted a zebra-skin rug and decided that the best way to do it was wait for a stray or maybe take the fence down

You got a prescription for zebra tranquilizer darts and a gun to shoot them from handy? Its not as if you can get Zebras to take bong hits until they pass out or anything like that Mr Crazy Idea Man.

No problem. A close friend of mine is a vet who has that stuff. When I need to handle animals which really do not like to be touched, I prefer to use a rope. If I just have to move a skittish animal, sometimes it is easiest to just chase it through gates that I get someone to open ahead of me. I don't like to tranquilize animals because it can very easily accidentally kill. On the other hand, bullets are even more likely to kill.

"But Fiscalini said there wasn't time to call. It's branding time on his ranch, and replacing a horse that might have been injured in a clash with the zebras would have cost him tens of thousands of dollars, he said.

'These zebras have no respect for fences. They tear fences down and go right through them,' Fiscalini said.

Hearst said: 'They have some respect for a fence. But if they want to move, they'll hop the fence.'

The zebras weren't trying to hurt the horses, but they were spooking them, so he had the right to shoot them, Fiscalini said.

obamartins:I understand being able to shoot the zebra, but how do you have the right to farking skin it and use it as a rug. Seems a little cruel to me.

platedlizard:Also, I understand shooting a dangerous animal, but skinning it and having it made into a rug just seems like they did it for some other reason then it being a danger. Like, they wanted a zebra-skin rug and decided that the best way to do it was wait for a stray or maybe take the fence down

Waste not want not. Why wouldn't you do something useful with the hide? That's the sort of thing that needs to be done fairly quickly or it just rots.

cloud_van_dame:One of these neighbors was claiming that the zebra was a predator.

Seriously, though, zebras are spooking the horses? They're horses. They spook at anything that runs around near them. I'm pretty sure you chasing the zebras off would have been just as(if not more) effective than you planting a couple of rifle rounds in the beasts.

Oh, and you're a farking rancher! How the hell do you catch loose animals?

This sounds more like a case of bitter neighbor syndrome than anything else.

/Also, if your zebras are jumping the fence, get a higher fence. You are responsible for that much.

As a rural resident in SLO county I say good on the rancher for protecting his property. Screw Hearst Castle for allowing their animals to repeatedly wander to someone else's property. Build a better fence for fark's sake, it's not like you're broke.

Zebras are dangerous to animals and people. They are not as much like horses as they are like donkeys who have a more agressive side. And since these are free roaming pets, they are certainly not easy to handle with ropes. Zebras will kick, strike, or bite you without a moment of hesitation. A striking animal can easily kill you in one motion. Striking is where the animal stands on its hind legs while pawing with its front.

As someone who raised many horses I can bet its the uncut males who usually get out, and the last thing you want is one chasing down your mares. As for the cattle, if they are dairy cattle being chased or frightened into stampeding can ruin a milking cow from stress, and will certainly ruin any cows milk for a week or more depending on the amount of stress. And stampeding cattle can be super dangerous when they run through a fence and acrossed the neighborhood!

Zebras a wild animals who get chased around by lions IRL they are not pets!